Ski Santa Fe + 10,000 Waves = Awesome

This past week we got a ton of snow. I think that it's the same weather system that is dumping all of the rain on California.  We had some accumulation here in town.  This is the view from my office window on Thursday:


But the Santa Fe Ski Area got, like, three feet or so.  Three feet of fresh snow!
So, suffice to say, we headed up to Ski Santa Fe on Saturday morning.  Now, I have only dabbled in skiing/snowboarding over the years and, since moving to Santa Fe, I have gone up only a dozen times or so.  All this to say, I am no Lindsey Vonn.  I stick to the blue (intermediate) runs.  Here's a photo of Kev at the top of Open Slope (link opens .pdf trail map):

The snow was great on Saturday, but it was bitter, bitter cold and there were occasional white-out conditions due to additional snowfall and wind.  Lots and lots of wind on that upper mountain, woo-wee!  I bought a neck cuff thingy and another hat to go under my helmet at the ski shop and felt better.  Still, I had icicles on my hair and face on Saturday.  Sunday it was still cold, but clear and sunny.  The photograph of Kevin above is from Sunday and it's so clear you can see the Jemez Mountains in the far distance.

When we called it in at the end of the day, we headed to the car and warmed up with a refreshing beverage and a snack.

Can you tell how freaking cold I was when this photo was taken on Saturday?  My cheeks are red like Santa's for crying out loud!

On the way back down the mountain...


... we decided to stop at 10,000 Waves.  10,000 Waves is an extremely beautiful Japanese-style spa.  They have saunas, hot tubs, facials, massages, scrubs, wraps, and all that kind of stuff.  Our favorite, and the most popular, aspect of 10,000 Waves offerings is the outdoor hot tubs.  The water is unchlorinated; the water allegedly is cleaned with a system of ultraviolet light.  Or something.  I don't know how these things work, I just enjoy them.  :)  

After parking the car, you walk up a winding pathway to the spa.  The sign at the bottom of the pathway said it burns 47 calories to walk the path to the top.  Not bad.


At night, it is lit with tiny lanterns.  I like 10,000 Waves at night especially because you can star-gaze while luxuriating in the warm water.  Kev and I actually went up for a soak twice this weekend: once on Friday in Kobuta private tub and then again for some apres ski on Saturday.  Here is the path near the top at night:



They provide you with towels, sandals, and robes and a locker key.  On Saturday, we went to the communal tub/sauna.  Sure, it's a bit chilly walking in a robe and flip flops to the outdoor tub, but once you get there, it's pure heaven.  Happiness is sitting in a hot tub while it's snowing. 

Here I am when we're leaving.  I have warmed up my freezing cold fingers and feel great, albeit tired.


After being a human icile for 5 hours, a 1 hour dunk at the Waves will keep you warm the rest of the evening. 

The best part is, we still have one more week left on our Millennium Ski Passes and there is yet another winter storm anticipated mid-week.  I know what I'll be doing next weekend!